The story of Quality Mould Inc. may sound like a familiar one in southwestern Pennsylvania.

The company started in 1983 making glass molds for manufacturers. But about 18 years in, the industry saw a shift and Quality Mould watched its customers taking their business overseas to competitors who could undercut the company’s prices.

“We invested in technology and cut our prices, and, whatever we cut, the Chinese would cut by 40 percent,” President D.J. Dunker said. “That business went over and all the molds went, and all the glass plants left, too.”

But Quality Mould has hung in there.

The Latrobe-based company has diversified, gaining new business by expanding its capabilities beyond glass molds and into precision machining parts for industries such as electricity breakers, defense, industrial machines and mining. Energy and the Marcellus Shale is the next area in which Dunker expects growth.

To expand its capability, the company has invested heavily in new technology. For the past four years, Quality Mould has bought at least two new machines a year.

This year alone, the company spent about $600,000 on two machines. The priciest, at $500,000, is a multitasking machine that is a combination mill and lathe that saves roughly 2 hours per part in manufacturing time.

“We get the job done quicker,” Dunker said. “We are more competitive with overseas.”

Since the recession began, the company has spent well over $1 million on new equipment, Dunker said. And the investment strategy is working. The company has not only kept the doors open, but they also didn’t have to let people go during the downturn.

Dunker says the old glass business is about 40 percent of revenue, with jobs still coming from GE for floodlights and spotlights, but he expects that mold business to continue to shrink. He is expecting growth from the region’s energy sector and electricity market, and will keep seeking new markets.

“The Marcellus Shale, we are really starting to see that come around, and we’re trying to make the right connections,” he said. “We have gotten a few jobs and made some parts for drills on the drilling wells.”

What the company did right was recognize the need for change, said Thomas Bloom, managing director of continuous improvement services for Catalyst Connection, a nonprofit that works with manufacturers to remain competitive.

Bloom helped the Quality Mould team organize its shop floor and maintain tighter controls of processes, leading to better efficiency and higher competitiveness.

“The thing (Dunker) was really willing to do was to say, ‘You know what? We gotta get better,’” Bloom said. “There really was no pride, he really wasn’t afraid to go to trade shows and events and wherever he could to find business, and then take it upon himself to get better.”

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